North-South co-operation committee to visit the Glens and Belfast

Members of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement will visit Northern Ireland next week.

The Committee will meet ‘Grow the Glens’ development group, Cushendall, the Rathlin Development Community Association (RDCA), and Bridge of Hope post-conflict support and reconciliation organisation based in Belfast.

TDs , Senators and MPs from the cross party Oireachtas GFAIC will receive presentations from them about their views and concerns around the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and discuss the likely impact of BREXIT on the North.

The committee plays a pivotal role in informing debate on key areas of mutual interest regarding North/South co-operation. It offers speaking rights to MPs from Northern Ireland alongside TDs and Senators, and aims to foster better links and dialogue between parliamentarians from both sides of the border.

This visit will help inform committee members and MPs of the cross community work that is happening and to this end representatives of all communities have been invited.

Senator Frances Black said: “The Good Friday Committee is unique in its focus on North-South cooperation, and I think it’s vital that we work in Belfast as well as Dublin.

“I’m delighted to be able to work with TDs and Senators from Leinster House and MPs from the North, and to get the input of concerned community groups. Brexit poses enormous challenges for the whole island, and we need to work together if we are to overcome them.”